Written Answers Tuesday 29 March 2005

Scottish Executive

Digital Technology

Margo MacDonald (Lothians) (Ind): To ask the Scottish Executive what benchmarks it plans to use to measure the educational successes of its Broadband for Scotland campaign.

Nicol Stephen: The key benchmark will be uptake. This is because the aim of the campaign was to educate businesses and households on the benefits of broadband in order to increase connections to the technology. It is estimated that business take-up has almost trebled since 2003, when the campaign began.

Energy

Mr Andrew Arbuckle (Mid Scotland and Fife) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how it intends to achieve the EU 2% target of energy creation from biofuel by 2010.

Nicol Stephen: This issue is reserved to the UK Government. EU Directive 2003/30/EC on the promotion of the use of biofuels or other renewable transport fuels requires member states to set targets for biofuel sales in 2005 and 2010. The Directive also set non-binding "reference" values for member states to take into account in setting their own sale targets; they are respectively 2% for 2005 and 5.75% for 2010. The UK Government has set a UK-wide renewable transport fuel target for 2005 of 0.3% of total fuel sales.

  The Scottish Executive is involved, through my membership of the Ministerial Low Carbon Group (MLCG), in work at a UK level looking into ways to promote the development, introduction and take-up of low carbon vehicles and fuels. The MLCG published its second annual report in October 2004 and a copy is available from the Parliament’s Reference Centre (Bib. number 35679).

  The Department for Transport has recently commissioned a feasibility study on the possible introduction of a Renewable Transport Fuel Obligation (RTFO) for biofuels and other renewable transport fuels, and is currently consulting with stakeholders at UK level. The Scottish Executive is closely following this work and considering its implications for Scotland.

  In Scotland, the Executive is supporting Scotland’s first large-scale biodiesel plant by the Argent Group. The plant is likely to increase biofuel sales in Scotland.

Environment

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what measures it is taking to implement the European Landscape Convention.

Ross Finnie: I recently gave my consent to the proposal from UK Ministers that the UK should sign and ratify the European Landscape Convention. The main aims of the convention are compatible with our approach to landscape policy and will bring many advantages for Scotland.

Ferry Services

Rob Gibson (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it plans to introduce a road equivalent tariff for ferry services to the Western and Northern Isles.

Nicol Stephen: I refer the member to the answer to question S2W-7850 on 10 June 2004. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/wa.search .

Ferry Services

Rob Gibson (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has calculated the benefits of a road equivalent tariff (RET) in comparison to existing ferry fares for passengers, lorries and animals travelling from (a) Brodick to Ardrossan, (b) Lochmaddy to Uig, (c) Stornoway to Ullapool, (d) Stromness to Scrabster and (e) Lerwick to Aberdeen.

Nicol Stephen: We have from time to time considered the possibilities of a ferry fares scheme for the Highlands and Islands based on RET, most recently in 2001. This followed the completion of an independent study of CalMac’s fares policy which concluded that RET would require a very significant increase in subsidy. We have taken the view that the present fares structure represents a reasonable balance between the interests of island communities and those of taxpayers. However, we have indicated that further research on fares will be carried out in the next few years.

Fisheries

Richard Lochhead (North East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what steps are being taken to reduce the level of discards of monkfish and other species and abandoned nets in the deepwater fishery as identified by the recently published report of the "DEEPNET" project.

Ross Finnie: The fisheries identified and considered by the DEEPNET project extend beyond the Scottish fishing zone, into other EU waters as well as Norwegian, Faroese and International waters. In order to reduce the amounts of abandoned fishing gear and high discard rates in these fisheries, the Scottish Executive engages actively in EU, NEAFC and bilateral negotiations, protecting Scottish interests and promoting good practice across a range of technical issues, including limits on gear soaking time and the effective marking of gear.

  Further, the Scottish Executive encourages and endorses voluntary co-operation on these matters between the different sectors of the various national fishing fleets concerned, such as that which produced the voluntary code of conduct agreed between Norwegian and Scottish industry representatives and signed at Banchory in 2002.

Housing

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S2W-14071 by Malcolm Chisholm on 14 February 2005, what percentage of people lived in overcrowded housing in (a) each year before 1999 for which figures are available and (b) 2004, broken down by local authority area.

Malcolm Chisholm: Information is not available centrally on numbers of overcrowded households prior to 1999 by local authority consistent with the information provided in the previous reply. Information for 2004 will be published in August as part of the Annual Report of the Scottish Household Survey.

Justice

Mrs Nanette Milne (North East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what its response is to concerns that victims of crimes such as vandalism, theft and breach of the peace will not consider themselves best served by the justice system if those accused and convicted of these crimes are issued with fixed penalty notices rather than summoned to court.

Cathy Jamieson: No person convicted of a crime will be offered a fixed penalty notice. We consider that fixed penalty notices, correctly and appropriately used, are an important part of a modern criminal justice system. They offer a quick, proportionate and effective response to minor offending so that an offender, and the community he or she is part of, are aware that such behaviour will not be tolerated.

  The use of fixed penalty notices for Antisocial behaviour will be exercised in line with guidelines from the Lord Advocate and the list of applicable offences will be kept under review. Vandalism and breach of the peace are amongst the list of fixed penalty offences at section 128 of the Antisocial Behaviour etc (Scotland) Act 2004, but theft is not. A pilot scheme testing the use of these penalties commenced in Tayside on 1 April 2005.

Justice

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many prosecutions there have been for the offence of driving while using a hand-held mobile phone.

Colin Boyd QC: Prosecutions for driving using a hand-held mobile telephone are taken under regulation 110 of the Road Vehicles (Construction and Use) Regulations 1986 which came into force on 1 December 2003.

  Since that date, 625 reported charges under regulation 110 in respect of using a mobile telephone have been the subject of criminal proceedings in court.

Rail Network

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what its position is on the price sought by Network Rail in respect of the grant of a servitude right for a bridge over the Inverness to Aberdeen railway to enable the proposed airport access road to proceed; what powers of intervention it, or any other body, has on this matter and whether such powers will be used, and what effect the action taken on this issue will have on the European funding available for the access road.

Nicol Stephen: This is a matter for Network Rail, Highland Council and the other parties involved in the development of the bridge and the proposed airport business park.

Rail Network

Margaret Jamieson (Kilmarnock and Loudoun) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will adopt and revive the Strategic Rail Authority’s programme of incremental output statements in respect of a half-hourly service between Kilmarnock and Glasgow.

Margaret Jamieson (Kilmarnock and Loudoun) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide funding to reactivate the Strategic Rail Authority’s suspended study into the provision of a half-hourly service between Kilmarnock and Glasgow.

Margaret Jamieson (Kilmarnock and Loudoun) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will consider providing an additional platform at each of Stewarton and Dunlop stations and reinstating double track on the single line between the two stations to enable capacity on the Kilmarnock to Glasgow service to be increased to half-hourly.

Nicol Stephen: We will consider this and other candidate projects in the Strategic Rail Authority’s enhancement programme following the transfer of responsibilities to the Scottish Executive proposed in the Railways Bill and currently before the UK Parliament.

Rail Network

Margaret Jamieson (Kilmarnock and Loudoun) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it supports the Strategic Rail Authority’s (SRA) aspiration to increase the structure gauge of the line between Kilmarnock and Glasgow to enable the passage of larger rail freight vehicles, the proposal to carry out gauge clearance works to enable the passage of Pendolino trains during West Coast main line diversions and Strathclyde Passenger Transport Authority’s wish to increase the service between Kilmarnock and Glasgow from hourly to half-hourly and whether it will provide funding to enable the progression of the suspended SRA study into the reinstatement of a length of double track and other necessary works between Stewarton and Dunlop.

Nicol Stephen: We will consider these proposals and other candidate projects in the Strategic Rail Authority’s enhancement programme following the transfer of responsibilities to the Scottish Executive proposed in the Railways Bill, currently before the UK Parliament.

Rail Network

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether, in light of the forthcoming devolution of railway powers to Scotland, it will urge Network Rail to supply maintenance and renewal budgets for Scotland and to appoint a director for Scotland as a single point of contact for the Executive, with the three main management streams affecting infrastructure and operations and enhancements within Network Rail reporting to this post.

Nicol Stephen: In future, we expect Network Rail to report separately on its expenditure and performance in Scotland. The Office of Rail Regulation has outlined its intentions in the Structure of Costs and Charges Review Initial Consultation Document  and will shortly consult on this matter.

  Network Rail’s internal management arrangements are a matter for the company.

Rail Network

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether, in light of the forthcoming devolution of railway powers to Scotland, it will have powers to seek derogations from Railway Group Standards for certain routes, such as the West Highland line and the Far North line and, if so, whether it will exercise these powers.

Nicol Stephen: No, only operators such as Network Rail or Train Operating Companies who are subject to Railway Group Standards can apply for derogations from them. The Scottish Executive will be responsible for specifying the outputs from the rail network in Scotland which Network Rail, through the Office of Rail Regulation, will be tasked with delivering.

Rail Network

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what powers in respect of railways it considers should be conferred on regional transport partnerships.

Nicol Stephen: It is our intention that the new regional partnership in the west of Scotland will have a role in the development, management and monitoring of rail services in its area. Other regional transport partnerships could, in due course, request a similar role.

Rail Network

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether, in light of the forthcoming devolution of railway powers to Scotland, it will have powers to seek variations in Network Rail’s licence conditions where these result in negative incentives, for example with respect to certain modern equivalent renewals.

Nicol Stephen: Responsibility for Network Rail’s licence will remain a matter for the Office of Rail Regulation.

Rail Network

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will set out its relationship with the Office of Rail Regulation, in particular in what way the office will be accountable to the Parliament.

Nicol Stephen: The Office of Rail Regulation is the independent body responsible for the economic, and in future safety, regulation of the GB rail network.

  The Office of Rail Regulation will have the same responsibilities in Scotland as in England and Wales and will be under a duty to comply with the reasonable requirements of the Scottish ministers as regards information and assistance. Like the Secretary of State for Transport, Scottish ministers will be required to provide guidance to the Office of Rail Regulation on desired outputs from the rail network and the public funding available for this. The Office of Rail Regulation will determine the income Network Rail will require to deliver these outputs.

Rail Network

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether, in light of the forthcoming devolution of railway powers to Scotland, (a) the Office of Rail Regulation and (b) Network Rail will be accountable to the Parliament and, if so, in what ways; in particular, whether these bodies can be required to provide an annual report to be laid before the Parliament; if not, whether the Executive considers that these bodies should do so, or be invited to do so, and whether it will invite either or both these bodies to report to the Parliament and, if so, on what basis, how often and with what remit.

Nicol Stephen: Network Rail is a private sector company accountable to its members and regulated by the independent Office of Rail Regulation. The Office of Rail Regulation is the independent body responsible for the economic, and in future, safety regulation of the GB rail network.

  Both the Office of Rail Regulation and Network Rail publish their annual reports and provide copies to the Scottish Parliament.

Rail Network

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether, in light of the forthcoming devolution of railway powers to Scotland, it will have powers to vary the requirements for strictly modern equivalent renewals where this could inhibit rail development projects.

Nicol Stephen: No, there is no requirement for strictly modern equivalent renewals. The Scottish Executive will be responsible for specifying the outputs from the rail network in Scotland, which Network Rail, through the Office of Rail Regulation, will be tasked with delivering and for funding enhancements to the rail network in Scotland.

Road Safety

Susan Deacon (Edinburgh East and Musselburgh) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive which primary schools have access to the Scottish Road Safety Campaign’s "Streetwise" road safety resource and how its effectiveness is monitored and reviewed.

Nicol Stephen: The Scottish Road Safety Campaign has not produced a resource called Streetwise . At least one copy of the Campaign’s Streetsense resource, which was piloted in 45 schools, has been provided to every primary school in Scotland. The resource can also be downloaded from the Campaign’s website at www.srsc.org.uk . The Scottish Executive plans to commission research to evaluate the resource later this year.

Roads

John Scott (Ayr) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what progress has been made with upgrading work on the Whitletts roundabout on the A77 and what the anticipated completion date is.

Nicol Stephen: South Ayrshire Council, acting on behalf of the Scottish Executive, is progressing the detailed design of the revised junction layout and signalisation at Whitletts Roundabout on the A77 trunk road.

  Subject to the availability of funding and the satisfactory completion of the statutory procedures, including land acquisition, it is anticipated that construction will commence in 2005-06 and should take five to six months to complete the work on the ground.

Roads

Scott Barrie (Dunfermline West) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to adopt the A8000 as a trunk road and whether it will ensure that the dualling of the road is completed.

Nicol Stephen: Responsibility for taking forward this local road scheme is a matter for the City of Edinburgh Council, as the responsible roads authority. Funding for the upgrade of the A8000/M9 Spur to dual carriageway is to be provided by the Forth Estuary Transport Authority (FETA). We have no current plans to trunk the route, but are in regular discussions with FETA and the council to ensure that this project is taken forward as a matter of priority.

Roads

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it considers that the determination of speed limit orders should continue to be dealt with by its Trunk Roads Network Management Division; whether it is satisfied that the division has sufficient local knowledge to be best placed to determine such matters, and whether there are any plans to devolve such matters to regional transport partnerships.

Nicol Stephen: The determination of speed limit orders is currently dealt with by the Trunk Road Network Management Division on behalf of Scottish ministers, as the Trunk Roads Authority. Consideration of such orders is progressed in consultation with other stakeholders including the police and local authorities and is also based on advice from the Trunk Road Operating Companies. The determination of speed limits is therefore based on information collected from a number of sources, using both local and detailed technical knowledge and experience.

  The functions of the Regional Transport Partnerships will be decided on their establishment and in light of their Regional Transport Strategies. In the longer term it may be possible for the partnerships to take on functions currently exercised by Scottish ministers.

Roads

George Lyon (Argyll and Bute) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what assessment it has made of the potential impact on rural development in Mull of the local authority’s decision to impose new weight limits on the roads in Mull.

Nicol Stephen: The imposition of weight limits on local roads on Mull is a matter for the Argyll and Bute Council as roads authority. Scottish ministers have no powers to intervene and no assessment has been carried out.